3-4 Defense
I've been using the 3-4 for a few seasons now and thought I would share my thoughts on it. IMHO it's the best "D" against the pass that can also stop the run, but it must be used properly and even more so must have the right type of defensive players at the right positions. The most important positions are the 1st OLB and NT (DT). Your 1st OLB has to be a horse. Speed, strength, tackling, GI & tech are all important. I always hear how LB's don't get sacks in GD, but I had an OLB get 14 one season! The most important assets for the NT (1st DT) are strength and athleticism. If the OLB is a horse the NT is the bull! He must be strong and athletic enough to put pressure up the middle on passing & running plays. When I've had one top of the line OLB and one strong, athletic NT (DT) to go along with 9 more defensive players that i consider "solid" (at least avg.) the 3-4 has always worked well for me.
Last but not least, you have to play "very aggressive" almost every play. I've tried "aggressive" and "balanced" but they simply don't work for me. When effective, the 3-4 will cause a lot of sacks and a ton of turnovers. The negative side of this is, when you rush the QB so aggressively and don't get to him it can give up a big play! I understand it's not for everyone, but for coaches that like to play aggressive defense and "take the game to their opponents" it's a fun "D" to play. Good luck to those who try it, and if you have thoughts about the 3-4 I would really enjoy discussing them here!

My initial though (I also play a 3-4) is that the 2 positions that you talk about are very easy to recruit. That would give you an advantage by not having to overspend on DL. It seems that in doing this with very aggressive that you would need very good DB's. I would like to hear everyone's thought on this.

Yes, good DB's are important, but IMO your #1 OLB is the most important player in the 3-4, followed by the NT (#1 DT), #2 OLB, then the DB's, then your 2 MLB & DE's are equal. Again this is just my opinion, and I too would really like to hear other coaches take on this...

Hey folks, this is my first season so im trying to absorb as much as I can. I tried to find the recruiting manifesto thats refered to in the beginning, but im kind of a forum idiot, so i cant find it. does anyone have a link to it? The one in the first post dosent come up for me. thanks for any help.

Great stuff and being new to this game this really helps. Just a couple questions.

1. When your using the Yatzr tool, do you need to save a spreadsheet of 100 recruits for each position or just overall.
2. How much time do you spend on practice plans? Also, how many O's and D's do you practice?
3. I am a little lost on the what the hell "GUESS means" Can someone let me in on that?
4. As far as using Yatzr, do you need to have your search parameters set in GD when you download the list? So search for OL over 1000 miles away, etc...
5. What is the S1, S2, S3..etc on the Yatzr tool?

I think that is it. Been in HD for about 100 seasons and for some reason GD was calling me today (well yesterday). Seems way more in depth than HD, so I may also have questions for setting up gameplans and such, but this should be enough for now. Thanks guys.